Moroccan wind farm certified ‘green’ by Dubai Carbon

Created: Sunday, 04 November 2018 05:30

This project is part of a wider sustainable effort to position Morocco as a green differentiator in the region. (Image source: Anastasia Palagutina/Unsplash)Morocco’s Khalladi wind farm owned and operated by ACWA Power has been registered with the first International Renewable Energy Certificate Standard (I-REC) by Dubai Carbon

Dubai Carbon is the authorised I-RECs issuer and treasurer for the UAE, Morocco, Jordan and Saudi Arabia.

ACWA Power stated that this project is part of a wider sustainable effort to position Morocco as a green differentiator in the region.

The country is the renewable energy market in the Arab world, with 3.6 GW of renewable energy plants already dispatching energy into the grid and 3.6 GW in development all within the commitment to reach 52 per cent of power generation capacity of Morocco from renewable energy by 2030, according to ACWA Power.

Paddy Padmanathan, president and CEO of ACWA Power, said, “With our aim to conserve the environment we operate in and contribute to the kingdom’s goal of maximising environmental efficiency, we are proud to mark the Khalladi wind farm as the first transaction of Morocco that qualifies for I-REC, which has also secured the Gold Standard certification, in keeping with ACWA Power’s commitment to accelerate Morocco’s vision to minimise impact on climate change and propagate sustainable development by transitioning to a low-carbon green economy.”

The Khalladi wind farm, located in Jbel Sendouq (30km from Tangier), has a capacity of 120MW generating energy equal to the annual average energy consumption of a city of 400,000 people. The plant will produce around 380GWh annually, directly powering major industrial customers connected to the high voltage network.

Ivano Iannelli, Dubai Carbon’s CEO, commented, “Renewable energy is essential at this time, and I-RECs enable companies to show they have reduced their carbon footprint. We are proud to pioneer the development of the I-REC standard in Morocco and register the first Project in the country. The issuing of I-RECs will promote the country’s progress in the renewable landscape and position it as an environmentally advanced country.”